76 Exercises 1 What is the difference? (A) Look at the underlined nouns. Are they are countable or uncountable? ? There was a car behind us. countable 4 Love makes the world go round. ? I never eat meat. uncountable 5 Good luck in your new job. 1 Do you play golf? 6 Power stations produce energy. 2 I had to wait ten minutes. 7 I'm taking a photo. 3 Just tell me one thing. 8 Would you like an apple? 2 A and some (B-C) Laura has been to the supermarket. What has she bought? Use a or some with these words: banana, biscuits, butter, cheese, eggs, flowers, lemon, light bulb, mineral water, magazine, soap, wine ? some/lowers 4 ? a magazine 5 ? some cheese 6 1 7 2 ……………………………………… 8 ……………………………………………… 3 ……………………………………… 9 ……………………………………………… Countable and uncountable nouns (A-C) Complete the conversation. Choose the correct form. Jessica: What are you doing, Andrew? Andrew: I'm writing (►)essay/an essay. Jessica: Oh, you've got (1) computer/a computer. Do you always write (2) essay/essays on your computer? Andrew: Yes, but I'm not doing very well today. I've been working on my plan for about three (3) hour/hours now. Jessica: You've got lots of books to help you, though. I haven't got as (4) many/much books as you. That's because I haven't got much (5) money/moneys. Quite often I can't even afford to buy (6) food/a food. Andrew: Really? That can't be (7) many/much fun. Jessica: I'd like to get (8) job/a job I can do in my spare time and earn (9) a/some money. I've got (10) a few/a little ideas, but what do you think I should do? Andrew: I know someone who paints (11) picture/pictures and sells them. Why don't you do that? Jessica: Because I'm no good at painting. 77 A carton of milk, a piece of information, etc a carton of milk two tins of soup kilo of sugar a piece/slice of bread a loaf of bread Milk, soup, etc are uncountable nouns. We cannot use a or a number in front of them. We do not usually say a milk or two soups. But we can say a carton of milk or two tins of soup. Here are some more examples. a tin of paint a bottle of water a box/packet of cereal a jar of jam a tube of toothpaste a glass of water a cup of coffee We can also use this structure with a plural noun after of. a packet of crisps a box of matches three kilos of potatoes a collection of pictures B A piece of information Advice, information and news are uncountable nouns. We cannot use them with a/an or in the plural. Can I give you some advice? NOT an-advice We got some information from the tourist office, NOT some informations That's wonderful news! NOT a wonderful news But we can use piece of, bit of and item of. Can I give you a piece of/a bit of advice? There are two pieces/bits of information we need to complete the questionnaire. There's a bit of /an item of news that might interest you. These nouns are uncountable in English, although they may be countable in other languages: accommodation, baggage, behaviour, equipment, fun, furniture, homework, housework, litter, luck, luggage, progress, rubbish, scenery, traffic, travel, weather, work Some countable nouns have similar meanings to the uncountable nouns above. COUNTABLE There aren't any jobs. It's a long journey. There were sofas and chairs for sale. We've booked a room. I've got three suitcases. UNCOUNTABLE There isn't any work. Travel can be tiring. There was furniture for sale. We've booked some accommodation. I've got three pieces of luggage. CARTON, TIN, ETC MEASUREMENTS a carton of orange juice a kilo of cheese five metres of cable twenty litres of petrol half a pound of butter a bar of chocolate a loaf of bread PIECE, SLICE, ETC a piece of wood a piece/slice of bread a piece/sheet of paper 77 Exercises 1 A carton of milk (A) What did Tom buy at the supermarket? Use of. Milk 0.35 Milk 0.35 ► two cartons of milk 1 kilo flour 0.85 ► a kilo of flour Jam 0.95 1 Matches 0.39 2 Bread 0.65 3 Bread 0.65 4 Chocolate 0.95 5 5 kilos potatoes 1.59 6 Breakfast cereal 1.38 7 Mineral water 0.74 8 Mineral water 0.74 Toothpaste 0.89 Total £10.48 2 Countable and uncountable nouns (B) Complete the sentences. Put in a/an or some. I really ought to do some housework. The people who camped in the field have left ………. I've been working on the business plan. I've made .… The visitors are here for two nights. They're looking for That shop has……………. nice sofa. You'll have to pay extra for the taxi because you've got The flat is quite empty. I need………… furniture. I can't possibly fit this guitar into……………. suitcase. You need ……………. luck to win at this game. rubbish. progress. accommodation. luggage. 3 Countable and uncountable nouns (B) You are talking about the holiday you had with a friend. Use these words: accommodation, awful journey, beautiful scenery, chair, fun, good weather, meal. You have to decide whether you need to put a/an or not. ? (It was quite easy to book a place to stay.) Booking accommodation was quite easy. ? (There was nothing to sit on in your room.) But my room wasn't very nice. It didn't even have a chair in it. 1 (You were in a beautiful part of the country.) It was a lovely place, though. There was all around us. 2 (The weather was good.) And we had………………………… while we were there. 3 (One evening you went to a restaurant with some other people.) One evening we had with some people we met. 4 (You enjoyed yourselves at the disco.) We went to a disco. We had ……………………… there. 5 (Travelling home was awful.) We had home last Saturday. 78 Nouns that can be countable or uncountable A A potato or potato? Some nouns can be either countable or uncountable. For example, a potato is a separate, individual thing, but potato cannot be counted. COUNTABLE I'm peeling the potatoes. Melanie baked a cake for David. Vicky was eating an apple. Someone threw a stone at the police. There's a hair on your shirt. UNCOUNTABLE Would you like some potato? Have some cake/a piece of cake. Is there apple in this salad? The house is built of stone. I must brush my hair, NOT hairs B A sport or sport? Often the countable noun is specific, and the uncountable noun is more general. COUNTABLE Rugby is a sport. (= a particular sport) That's a nice painting over there. We heard a sudden noise outside. John Lennon had an interesting life. UNCOUNTABLE Do you like sport? (= sport in general) Paul is good at painting. Constant noise can make you ill. Life is complicated sometimes. C A paper or paper? Some nouns can be countable or uncountable with different meanings. COUNTABLE / bought a paper. (= a newspaper) I'll have a glass of orange juice, please. Have you got an iron? (for clothes) I switched all the lights on. I've been to France many times. The journey was a great experience. I run a small business. (= a company) We finally found a space in the car park. UNCOUNTABLE / need some paper to write on. I bought a piece of glass for the window. The bridge is made of iron. There's more light by the window. I can't stop. I haven t got time. He has enough experience for the job. I enjoy doing business. (= buying and selling) There's no space for a piano in here. There are hundreds of satellites out in space. A coffee or coffee? Words for drink are usually uncountable: Coffee is more expensive than tea. But when we are ordering or offering drinks, we can say either a cup of coffee or a coffee. Two coffees, please. (= two cups of coffee) Would you like a beer? (= a glass/bottle/can of beer) Some nouns can be countable when we are talking about a particular kind or about different kinds. Chianti is an Italian wine. (= a kind of Italian wine) The use of plastics has greatly increased. (= the use of different kinds of plastic) 78 Exercises 1 A potato or potato? A sport or sport? (A-B) Complete the conversations. Choose the correct form. ► Can I pick an apple/some apple from your tree? ~ Yes, of course. 1 I think sport/a sport is boring. ~ Me too. I hate it. 2 We ought to buy some potato/some potatoes. ~ OK, I'll get them. 3 I think painting/a painting is a fascinating hobby. ~ Well, you're certainly very good at it. 4 Did you hear noise/a noise in the middle of the night? ~ No, I don't think so. 5 Is there cheese/a cheese in this soup? ~ Yes, a little. 6 I had conversation/a conversation with Vicky last night. ~ Oh? What about? 7 Shall I put a chicken/some chicken in your sandwiches? ~ Yes, please. 8 Are you a pacifist? ~ Well, I don't believe in war/a war, so I suppose I am. 9 It isn't fair. ~ No, life/a life just isn't fair, I'm afraid. 10 What's the matter? ~ You've got some egg/some eggs on your shirt. 2 A paper or paper? (C) Complete the conversations. Put in these nouns: business (x2), experience (x2), glass, iron, light, paper, space, time. Put a/an or some before each noun. ► Harriet: Did you manage to park in town? Mike: It took me ages to find a space. And all I wanted was to buy some paper to wrap this present in. 1 Sarah: Are you busy tomorrow? Mark: I'm meeting someone in the office. We've got………………………… to discuss. 2 Trevor: Do you think I need to take………………………. with me for my shirts? Laura: Oh, surely the hotel will have one. 3 Vicky: I was going to have some juice, but I can't find Rachel: If you turned .……………………… on, you might be able to see properly. 4 Claire: I've never met your brother. Mark: Oh, he's usually very busy because he runs……………………… . . . But he's been ill recently. The doctor has ordered him to spend ……. resting. 5 Daniel: How did your interview go? Emma: Well, I didn't get the job. I think they really wanted someone with………………………. of the work, and that's what I haven't got. So it was a bit of a waste of time. And the train coming back was two hours late. That's…………………………I don't want to repeat. 3 Countable or uncountable? (A-D) Complete Claire's postcard to her sister. Choose the correct form. The island is very peaceful. (►)Life/A life is good here. Everybody moves at a nice slow pace. People have (1) time/a time to stop and talk. It's (2) experience/an experience I won't forget for a long time. There aren't many shops, so I can't spend all my money, although I did buy (3) painting/a painting yesterday. Now I'm sitting on the beach reading (4) paper/a paper. The hotel breakfast is so enormous that I don't need to have lunch. I've just brought (5) orange/an orange with me to eat later. I've been trying all the different (6) fruit/fruits grown in this part of the world, and they're all delicious. 79 Agreemen A Subject and verb Look at these examples of agreement between the subject (e.g. the window) and the verb (e.g. is). SINGULAR The window is open. She was upset. It has been raining. The soup tastes good. This method doesn't work. After a singular or an uncountable noun and after he, she or it, we use a singular verb. B Everyone, something, every, all, etc After everyone, something, nothing, etc, we use a singular verb (see also Unit 103C). Everyone was pleased. Something is wrong. But compare these examples with every, each and all. After a phrase with every or each, we use a After all and a plural noun, we use a plural verb, singular verb. Every seat has a number. Each door is a different colour. C One of, a number of and a lot of After one of , we use a singular verb. One of the photos is missing. After a lot of , the verb agrees with the noun. Every year a lot of pollution is created, and a lot of trees are cut down. D Any of, either of, neither of and none of When a plural noun comes after any of, either of, neither of or none of, we can use either a singular or a plural verb. Is/Are any of these old maps worth keeping? I wonder if either of those alternatives is/are a good idea. Neither of these cameras works/work properly. None of the plants has/have grown very much. E An amount + a singular verb After an amount of money, a distance, a weight or a length of time, we normally use a singular verb. Eight pounds seems a fair price. A hundred metres isn't far to swim. Ninety kilos is too heavy for me to lift. Five minutes doesn't seem long to wait. We are talking about the amount as a whole, not the individual pounds or metres. PLURAL The windows are open. The door and the window are open. Her eyes were wet. They have got wet. The biscuits taste good. These methods don't work. After a plural noun or they, and after nouns joined by and, we use a plural verb. All the seats have a number. After a number of , we normally use a plural verb. A number of questions were asked. . Harriet: Did you manage to park in town? Mike: It took me ages to find a space. And all I wanted was to buy some paper to wrap this present in. 1 Sarah: Are you busy tomorrow? Mark: I'm. weather, meal. You have to decide whether you need to put a/an or not. ? (It was quite easy to book a place to stay.) Booking accommodation was quite easy. ? (There was nothing to sit on in your. Bread 0.65 3 Bread 0.65 4 Chocolate 0 .95 5 5 kilos potatoes 1. 59 6 Breakfast cereal 1.38 7 Mineral water 0.74 8 Mineral water 0.74 Toothpaste 0. 89 Total £10.48 2 Countable and uncountable